


Hold your Tongue

by LucidaCentury (Sephora909)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-22
Updated: 2014-04-22
Packaged: 2018-01-20 10:51:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1507832
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sephora909/pseuds/LucidaCentury
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rumple is spying on Belle while under a disguise, and he beats up people who backbite Belle.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Hold your Tongue

**Author's Note:**

> [Show your love on Tumblr? o3o](http://lucidacentury.tumblr.com/post/83549379257/hold-your-tongue)

He should never have made her leave. Day after day, Rumplestiltskin’s fear for Belle grew until it was impossible for him to think about anything else. Who knew what dangers she would encounter outside the walls of the castle, out of his reach? He tried in vain to convince himself he had made the right choice, that he couldn’t both keep Belle close to him and get his son back. Yet he could practically hear Baelfire telling him he had to protect his true love.

However, she surely never wanted to see him again, so let alone agreeing to be under his protection. After how poorly he had treated her, she would not call his name for help, even if her life depended on it. Therefore, he only had one option left: watching over her from the shadows. He would come up with some sort of spell later to keep her out of harm’s way, but for now, he had to hurry and find her.

In a hurry, Rumplestiltskin made his dark red brown cloak appear on his back and pulled his hood over his head. Last step before going: preparing the device to reunite her with Belle. He conjured the magical compass in his hand and placed some of his beloved’s hair inde. One spell later, he disappeared in a purple cloud of magic.

Rumplestiltskin was surprised to reappear at the edge of the village he recognized as the closest to the Dark Castle. What was Belle doing in this dreadful place? Their proximity to his home had made the villagers the most superstitious and narrow-minded people he ever met in three hundred years of existence. That was no place for Belle.

Today, the village was buzzing with activity, just like any market day. Yet Rumplestiltskin had spent enough time on markets to tell something was amiss. The people looked wary and suspicious, as if suspecting a murderer was among them. The atmosphere in the streets was most definitely tensed. For one moment, he even feared getting discovered despite his natural discretion. But this thought was forgotten as soon as he spotted his lovely Belle among the crowd of worthless villagers. Even though she looked tired and lacked her usual cheerfulness, he could barely contain his relief at seeing her unharmed. A small smile tugged at the corner of his lips, only to get wipped off by gossiping women he overheard.

“The devil’s whore came back, huh?”

“No one thought she would have dared to set foot here after our warning last week.”

“We have to do something to keep that harlot out of our village, least she taints it.”

“Fear not, the mayor is taking a decision right now to ensure the little minx stays out with her lewd sins.”

Horrified by what he heard, Rumplestiltskin’s relief quickly turned into murderous thoughts. How could they torture such a gentle soul with shameful accusations? He had to get away or he’ll slaughter them all. He staggered away from the marketplace until he collapsed safely against a wall in a dark alley. From there, he could still see Belle in the distance. Everyone glared at her with contempt, repugnance or a religious fear. Why did she stay in this hellhole? Even if he had kept her locked up in his dungeon, she would have happier. There must be something he could do for her without her knowing it. Only as he began to think of a solution did he hear the conversation of two young men at the entrance of the alley.

“She’s a true beauty, that lady,” the taller dark-haired lad said with admiration.

“Aye, the devil’s powerful enough to get what’s best.”

“The whole town says she was his, but does anyone got proof? For all I know, she doesn’t have any gold, or else she wouldn’t be here buying groceries for the funny old man.”

“C’mon, lots of people saw her coming down the Cursed Road, she has to have gone to the castle. We don’t know what she got from the devil, but I’m pretty sure I know what his price was,” the smaller lad suggestively said with a dirty grin. “After all, even monsters must get tired of wanking!”

“Well, he’s not the only one, and now that she needs money…”

The young man with dark hair never finished his sentence, for the simple and good reason that his foul tongue was missing. Panic seized him as he coughed and put his fingers in his mouth in search for his organ. But it was nothing compared to the terror the two youngsters experienced when they heard a distinctive voice from behind them.

“Looking for this?” the Dark One asked with a false nonchalance.

Holding the slimy tongue in his hand, Rumplestiltskin had completely snapped. He had to take his anger out on someone, and those two fools had done much to deserve the fate he had in store for anyone who dared to drag Belle’s name through the mud.

The lads didn’t stay awestruck for very long: their survival instinct soon kicked in and yelled at them to run. Yet they barely had gotten up when Rumplestiltskin had them immobilised with magic.

“First you backbite the most noble lady who ever walked this earth, and now you try to give me the slip. You brats really need to be taught a lesson. One you may very well pay with your worthless life.”

With a flicker of his wrist, he threw the two rogues against a wall, down a narrower alley parallel to the marketplace so that no one would see and disturb them. If Rumplestiltskin couldn’t turn the entire town into snails for Belle’s sake, he would at least allow himself the relief of knowing the two toy boys would never lay their eyes or anything else on his true love.

Helplessness struck them both, but the one with his tongue left desperately wanted to buy himself a handful of seconds to live.

“It… It wasn’t me, I didn’t mean it! He’s the one who made me talk so ill!” the boy pleaded, pointing at his ‘friend’ who glared at him in outrage.

“You know something else monsters get tired of? Being lied to.”

To protect his ears from further nonsensical whimpering, Rumplestiltskin also took the other lad’s tongue and tossed it away together with the first.

“Now, what will I do with you, I wonder?” he asked as he walked closer to his preys. “ If you enjoy singing, I could offer you a great professional opportunity... as castrati,” he added with a cruel laugh. “But then that wouldn’t be very satisfactory for me. You see, I find myself in need to… blow off steam.”

He began by a first kick in the closest lad’s face. Then Rumplestiltskin completely lost control of himself. His rage clouded his mind, demanded pain, and blood, and crushed bones. And that’s exactly what he intended to get. Magic kept the youngsters on the ground, even though it still let them squirm so they still had some hope left he could shatter. The Dark One conscientiously stained his boots with the boy’s blood, hitting him again and again. His face was a sorry mess, but it was only a beginning. Now that his fury was unleashed, there was no stopping it.

When kicking stopped being satisfying, Rumplestiltskin conjured a heavy walking stick. With the first blow in the shoulder, a pleasant crack reached his ears. The lad tried to scream, but without his tongue, no sound came out. The Dark One went on, intending on beating up the lad until he was just a heap of black and blue flesh.

“Rumple, stop!”

Rumplestiltskin froze as soon as he heard the soft tormented voice. The rod fell from his numb hand. He turned around very slowly, carefully, as if it was his imminent death which stood behind, and not his once true love.

“Belle?”

Rumplestiltskin’s voice trembled. And so did his whole being when he saw his beloved’s eyes red with unshed tears, grief, and the deepest reproach.


End file.
